Gerber



July 17, 1962 F. GERBER TEXTILE DRAFTING ASSEMBLY 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dot. 22, '1959 I AMEN/*0? 2 W 5 Wk y 1962 F. GERBER 3,044,128

TEXTILE DRAFTING ASSEMBLY Filed Oct. 22, 1959 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 July 17, 1962 F. GERBER TEXTILE DRAFTING ASSEMBLY 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Oct. 22, 1959 INVENTOP July 17, 1962 F. GERBER 3,044,

TEXTILE DRAFTING ASSEMBLY Filed Oct. 22, 1959 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 F/a/a fitatea atent 3,044,128 Patented July 17, 1962 3,044,123 TEXTHE BRAFTENG ASEMBLY Fritz Gerber, Kirehheim, Tech, Germany, assignor to SKF Kugellagerfabriken G.m.b.H., Stuttgart Bad Connstatt, Germany Filed Oct. 22, 1959, Ser. No. 848,062 Claims priority, application Germany Oct. 25, 1958 13 (Zlairns. (Cl. l929) The present invention relates to textile machines and more particularly to the drafting section of a spinning machine.

As is well known, in the drafting section of such a spinning machine the rovings are stretched in the drafting field. Each of the drafting assemblies includes a toprolls-carrying arm which carries thetop-rolls of the drafting assembly, and this arm is conventionally supported for movement upwardly from its lower operating position to an upper inoperative position.

A disadvantage of conventional structure of the above type resides in the fact that when the top-rolls-carrying arm is moved upwardly away from its lower operating position toward its upper inoperative position, the toprolls are inevitable moved through a slight distance parallel to the drafting field with respect to the bottom rolls so that there is an additional undesired draft applied to the roving at the very beginning of the upward movement of the top-rolls-carrying arm, and this undesired additional draft may sometimes be so great that the roving will break when the drafting operation is started again, and even if breakage does not occur the resulting yarn lacks the desired uniformity. It should be noted that when the top-rolls-carrying arm is returned downwardly toward its operating position, then just at the very end of its movement the top-rolls again shift in the direction of the drafting field in a direction opposite to that which takes placewhen the top-roll-carrying arm is initially moved upwardly away from the drafting field.

The textile drafting assemblies of the type referred to above have additional drawbacks. For example, considerable time and labor is required when assembling the several drafting assemblies into a bank of assemblies which will operate simultaneously on a plurality of rovings, and often in order to be able to remove one of the assembles from the bank of assemblies it is necessary to remove an entire series of drafting assemblies in order to be able to get at the one assembly it is desired to remove and replace, for example.

A further disadvantage of the conventional structure of the type discussed above resides in the fact that any twist which is in a roving backs up through the drafting field at the very beginning of the movement of the toprolls away from the drafting field, and as a result the turning of the roving becomes unequal in the part before the drawing-frame.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a textile drafting assembly which will reliably prevent any additional undesired draft being applied to a roving as a result of the movement of the top-rolls upwardly from or back toward the drafting field.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a textiledrafting assembly which guarantees that when the top-rolls-carrying arm is moved upwardly away from the drafting field the top-rolls themselves will not move in a direction substantially parallel to the drafting field so as to produce any undesired draft.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a structure which guarantees that a top-rollscarrying arm will move during the initial phase of its travel away from the drafting field in a direction substantially perpendicular to the drafting field.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a structure which enables any desired top-rolls-carrying arm and the structure connected thereto to be removed from the assembly while the rest of the assembly remains in the bank of drafting assemblies, so that there is no particular inconvenience involved in removing any desired one of the top-rolls-carrying arms from the entire bank of drafting assemblies.

An additional object of the present invention is to provide a textiledrafting assembly with a structure which will guarantee that when the top-rolls are moved upwardly away from the drafting field the front set of top-rolls will remain at the drafting field after the rear top-rolls move away from the drafting field so as to prevent a twist in the roving from backing up through the drafting field while the springs are unloaded.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide an exceedingly compact rugged structure made up of relatively simple components which when they move with respect to each other have a minimum amount of friction and which at the same time guarantee reliable substantially maintenance-free operation over a long period of time.

With the above objects in view the present invention includes in a textile drafting assembly a stationary support means and an elongated top-rolls-carrying arm carried by the support means for movement downwardly toward and upwardly away from a lower operating position where the arm is substantially parallel to the drafting field. A guide means constructed according to the present invention cooperates with the support means and with the arm to guide the latter when it is in the region of the lower operating position in a direction substantially perpendicular to the drafting field so as to prevent any undesired movement of the top-rolls in a direction substantially parallel to the drafting field and thus avoid any undesired additional draft being applied to the rovings.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which: a

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of one embodiment of a drafting assembly according to the invention, part of the structure being illustrated in section;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the structure of FIG. 1 at the part of the structure which is connected. to the stationary supporting structure and with part of the stationary support structure removed so as to clearly illustrate the details of the structure of the invention;

FIG. 3 shows the structure of FIG. 2 during the initial phase of the movement of the top-rolls-carrying arm upwardly away from its lower operating position;

FIG. 4 shows the structure of FIG. 3 in a position still nearer to the upper inoperative position of the top-rollsearrying arm;

FIG. 5 shows in solid lines the highest position to which the top-rolls-carrying arm is moved and in dot-dash lines the final position which the top-rolls-carrying arm takes when it is in its upper inoperative position;

FIG. 6 is a transverse section taken substantially along line VlVl of FIG. 3 in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 7 is a side elevation of another embodiment of a textile drafting assembly according to the present invention;

FIG. 8 fragmentarily illustrates the rear part of the assembly of FIG. 7 in an intermediate position between the lower operating and upper inoperative position of the top-rolls-carrying arm;

' undesired draft.

FIG. 9 shows the position of the parts of FIG. 8 in the final location of the top-rdlls-carrying arm in its upper inoperative position; and

FIG. is a view of the structure of FIG. 7 as seen in the direction of the arrow X of FIG. 7.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-6, the structure illustrated therein includes the elongated stationary horizontal bar 1 which carries an entire bank of drafting assemblies in side by side relation, as is well known. Each of these assemblies includes a supporting bracket 2 which is fixed in a known way to the bar 1 so as to be carried thereby and which extends upwardly from the bar 1, the supporting bracket 2 including a pair of side walls which are parallel to and spaced from each other, as is particularly evident from FIG. 6. The drafting assembly further includes an elongated top-rolls-carrying arm 3 which forwardly of the bracket 2 is in the form of an elongated hollow channel which is open at its bottom. The top-rolls-carrying 4 addition to the intermediate roll 5' which directly engages the lever 4 to support the latter for turning movement around the pivot pin 5 a pair of additional outer rolls 5', and these rolls 5 are respectively located in a pair of elongated slots 13 which are formed in the pair of rear side wall portions of the arm 3, these slots 13 being aligned with each other and the rolls 5' being provided to reduce the friction as much as possible during movement of the arm 3 relative to the supporting bracket 2. As may be seen from FIG. 2 the slots 13 when the arm 3 is in its lower operating position extend in a direction substantially perpendicular to the drafting field. The direction of slot 13 and the slots which in the following are named as approximately vertical mounted to the plane of the drafting field deviates the more from the vertical to the plane of the drafting field the more the guiding arms deviate from the parallel to the plane of the drafting field,

. as the bends must be mounted tangential to the circle,

arm 3 has a pair of rear side wall portions shown in section in FIG. 6 located between'and engaging the side walls of the bracket 2, and the top wall of the arm 3' terminates forwardly of the supporting bracket 2 in the position of the parts shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The movement of the top-rolls-carrying arm 3 between its lower operating position shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and its upper inoperative position shown in dot-dash lines in FIG. 5 is brought about by manipulation of a lever means 4 which has a rear end portion extending between the rear side wall portions of the arm 3, as is also apparent from FIG. 6; An elongated pivot pin 5 is carried by and extends between the side walls of the bracket 2, and the lever 4 i located between each pair of rolls'to carry the latter,

and the shafts 9', 10' and 11 of the twin pairs of toprolls, the journals of which are not shown, are indicated in FIG. l turnably supported in a well known manner by the forward free ends of the saddle arms 12, the saddles 12' being respectively located at the forward ends of the arms 12 to receive and carry the central shaft portions 9, 10, 11 of the top-rolls shown in FIG. 1. v

The several saddle arms 12 are pivotally carried in the well known manner by the arm 3 and they are urged downwardly with respect to the arm 3 through springs which are conventionally located between the top wall of the arm 3 and the several saddle arms 12 to urge the latter downwardly and thus apply the top-rolls respectively downwardly toward the bottom rolls with a predetermined pressure so that the rolls are suitably loaded to provide the desired draft. The arm 3 is held in its lower operating position shown in FIG. 1 in opposition to the compressed springs which act on the several saddle arms 12, and as soon as a structure which is described below is actuated to release the arm 3 for movement to its upper inoperative position these springs expand to raise the arm 3 with respect to the saddle arms 12, and with the structure of the invention during this initial phase of the movement of the arm 3 toward its upper inoperative portion the several rolls 9, 10, .11 will remain stationary and will not shift in the drawing field so as to produce an Of course, when these springs expand upon release of the arm 3 for upward movement the structure, before further upward movement of the arm 3 takes place, rests on the rovings in the drafting field only with the weight of the top-rolls as well as the arm 3 and not with the added force which comes from the compression of the loading springs. I

As is apparent from FIG. 6, the pivot pin 5 carries 1D.

which from the joints of the guiding arms round the top roller shaft is described as the centre of motion. The weighting arm must operate this motion either to bring it into operating or inoperating position, as long as the top rollers are mounted on the lower rollers.

Also, each of the rear side wall portions of the arm 3 is formed at its lower end with an elongated cutout 14 having opposed side edges parallel to the side edges of the slot 13, and the stationary bar 1 is received in the cutout 14 when the arm 3 is in its lower operating position.

As may be seen from FIG. 2, the lever 4 is provided below the pivot pin 5, as viewed in FIG. 2, with an arm 4' which extends between the rear side wall portions of the arm 3, and this arm 4 carries a cross pin 16 which extends through and beyond the arm 4' and which turnably carries a pair of rollers 16' also provided for the purpose of reducing friction. There rollers 16' together with the ends of the pin 16 are located in a pair of elongated additional slots 15 of substantially V-shaped configuration, these slots 15 also being formed in the pair of rear side wall portions of the arm 3, and the slots and cutout 14 of one rear wall portion of the arm 3 are identical with and aligned with those of the outer rear wall portion of the arm 3. The pin means 16, 16'

cooperates with the slots 15 to raise and lower the arm 3. during turning of the lever 4, while the pin means 5, 5' and the bar 1 respectively cooperate with the slots 13 and the cutouts 14 to form a pin-and-slot means cooperating with the support means 2 and the top-rolls-carrying arm'3 to guide and to restrict the latter during the initial phase of its movement away from the drafting field in a direction substantially perpendicular to the drafting field so that the arm 3 will remain substantially parallel to the drafting field during the initial phase of the movement of the arm 3 away from the drafting field. Thus, the several pins and slots or cutouts serve as a guide means cooperating with thesupport means 2 and the arm 3 to guide the latter for movement between its lower operating position and its upper inoperative position.

As may be seen particularly from FIG. 2, the left end portions of the slots 15 are provided with detent recesses 15' into which the rollers 16 extend so as to form with the recess portions 15' detents which releasably hold the structure in the position indicated in FIG. 2 in opposition to the loading springs which act on the arms 12 in the manner described above. In order to release the arm 3 for upward movement from the position of FIG. 2 it is necessary for the operator to start to turn the lever 4 in the direction of the arrow A of FIG. 2 so as to move the rollers 16 respectively out of the recess portions 15' so as to release the detent and in this way free the structure for movement.

FIG. 3 shows the position which the parts take at an initial portion of the turning of the lever 4 by the operator. The lever 4 has moved the rolls 16' out of the recesses 15, respectively, to the crest of the V-slots 15 and the upward movement of the arm 3 has been produced not only by the turning lever 4 but also by the expanding compression springs which act on the arms 12. The continued manual turning of the lever 4 from the position of FIG. 3 to that of FIG. 4 advances the pin 16 and roller 16' to the right end of the slots 15, as viewed in FIG. 3, and results in further raising of the arm 3 from the position of FIG. 3 to that of FIG. 4, and as may be seen from a comparison of FIGS. 3 and 4 it is during the movement of the parts from the position of FIG. 3 to that of FIG. 4 that the top-rolls 9 and 10 leave the drafting field and start to move upwardly away from the drafting field. During this time, which is to say the time during the movement of the parts from the position of FIG. 2 to that of FIG. 4, the guide means formed by the pin means 5, 5' and the slots 13 as well as the bar 1 and the cutouts 14 guarantees that the arm 3 is guided solely in a direction which will prevent any rolling or shifting of the top-rolls with respect to the bottom rolls, and this result is brought about by the particular inclination of the side edges of the notches 14 and the side edges of the slots 13.

It should be noted that in the position of the parts shown in FIG, 4 the forward pair of top-rolls 1d which are not shown in FIG. 4 are still at the drafting field in the position illustrated in FIG. 1. As is apparent from FIGS. 1-4, the arm 3 carries a pair of stops 3 which respectively extend beneath the arms 12 of the pair of rear sets of top-rolls 9 and 10, and during upward movement of the arm 3 from the position of FIG. 2 to that of FIG. 3 these stops 3' have not yet engaged the pair of rear saddle arms 12. However, the moving from the elevation of FIG. 3 to that of FIG. 4 the stops 3 which are fixedly carried by the arm 3 do come into engagement with the pair of rear saddle arms '12 so that these arms cannot turn downwardly further with respect to the upwardly moving arm 3 and as a result they are now constrained to move upwardly with the arm 3, the saddle arms 12 being shown in their lowermost positions with respect to the arm 3 in FIG. 4. It will be noted from FIG. 1, however, that the arm 3 is provided with a stop having a large clearance to limit the downward movement of the forward most saddle arm 12 which cooperates with the forward top-rolls 11. Therefore, when the structure has reached the position shown in FIG. 4 the forward set of top-rolls 11 is still at the drawing field nipping the rovings between these forward top-rolls iii and the forward bottom rolls 8, and as a result any twist in the rovings cannot back up through the drafting field during the initial phase of the movement of the rolls 9 and It? away from the draftingfield. It is only during the subsequent further turning of the arm 3 through a distance sufficient to cause the forward arm 12 and top-rolls 1'1 to move upwardly away from the drafting field that this twist can possibly move back beyond the forward rolls.

As may be seen from FIG. 4, when the arm 3 has reached the elevation shown in FIG. 4 the rear side wall portions of the arms 3 can clear the stationary bar 1 during counterclockwise turning of the arm 3, and at this time the rolls 16' have reached the right ends of the slots so that upon further turning of the lever 4 in a counterclockwise direction beyond the position of FIG. 4 to the solid line position illustrated in FIG. 5 the arm 3 will be turned around the axis of the pivot pin 5 to the solid line position shown in FIG. 5 Where the lower rear edge portions '3' of the rear wall portions of the arm 3 are located over a forwardly directed surface portion of the stationary supporting bar 1. When the parts have reached the solid line position indicated in FIG. 5, the operator holds the arm 3 at its front end so as to prevent turning of the arm 3 back to its operating position while the operator with the other hand turns the lever 4 back to the dot-dash line position indicated in FIG. 5, and as a result while the arm 3 is held in this manner the turning lever 4 will permit the arm 3 to move down to the dot-dash 'line position illustrated in FIG. 5 where the edge portions 3 engage the forwardly directed exterior surface portion of the bar 1 to enable the bar 1 to cooperate with the arm '3 to maintain the latter in the upper inoperative position indicated in dot-dash lines in FIG. 5. Of course, the center of gravity of the arm 3 and all of the structure carried thereby is at all times located to the right of the pivot pin 5, as viewed in FIGS. 1-5, and thus the arm 3 and the parts carried thereby will always have a tendency to turn in a clockwise direction, and thus the relative position of the bar 1 and arm 3 when the latter is in its upper inoperative position shown in dot-dash lines in FIG. 5 will act to prevent the arm 3 from moving downwardly beyond the dot-dash line position illustrated in FIG. 5. If desired, any suitable pressure means such as suitable springs or the like may be provided to cooperate with the arm 3 topr-event turning of the latter back to ward its operating position while the lever 4 is moved from the solid toward the dot-dash line position shown in FIG. 5 so as to guarantee that the arm 3 will remain in its upper inoperative position at this time.

In order to return the top-rolls-carrying arm 3 to its operating position, it is only necessary for the operator to again turn the lever 4 upwardly to the solid line position thereof shown in FIG. 5 soas to raise the arm 3 to an elevation where its lower rear end portions will clear the bar 1 and now without preventing clockwise turning of the arm 3 the lever 4 is turned in a clockwise direction, as viewed in FIG. 5, so that the arm 3 is free to turn in a clockwise direction until the cutouts 14 becomes aligned with the bar 1 and then during the continued downward movement of the arm 3 the guide means formed by the cutouts 14 and the bar 1 as well as the slots 13 and the pin means '5, 5 cooperate with the support means 2 of the arm 3 to guide the latter during the final phase of its return movement in a direction substantially perpendicular to the drafting field while remaining substantially parallel thereto and as a result there is no rolling or shifting of the top-rolls on the bottom rolls during the return movement of the top-rolls-carrying arm to its operating position.

As may be seen from FIG. 5 the pivot pin 5 may be in the form of an outer sleeve having a head end engaging the exterior surface of one of the side walls of the supporting bracket 2, this sleeve being internally threaded and receiving in its interior a screw having a head end engaging the exterior surface of the other Wall of the bracket 2. Thus, by screwing this screw into the sleeve the pivot pin is fixed to the supporting bracket 2, the great advantage of this construction resides in the fact that the pin can be easily removed simply by unscrewing the sleeve and screw from each other so as to entirely remove the pivot pin 5 from the assembly, and as soon as this is done the entire top-rolls-carrying arm 3 and all of the structure carried thereby can be removed While the supporting bracket remains fixed to the arm 1. In this way it is possible to remove any desired one of the bank of top-rolls-' carry-ing arms simply by removing the pivot pin 5, and the necessity of removing an entire assembly or of removing a series of assemblies in order to be able to remove a desired top-rolls-carrying arm and the strutcure connected thereto is eliminated. This provision of the removable pivot pin 5 with a top-rolls-carrying arm which can be removed while the bracket 2 remains fixed to the supporting bar I is of the utmost significance in the assembly of a bank of drafting mechanisms since with this arrangement it is not necessary to connect the several supporting brackets 2 to the arm 1 and once a set of supporting brackets 2 are connected to the arm 1, these supporting brackets 2 can remain while a diiferent set of toprolls-carrying arms are connected to the brackets 2, as desired.

Referring now to FIGS. 7-10, there is illustrated therein another embodiment of the invention, and in this embodiment .a supporting bracket 2 is also connected to the therethrough, and this pivot pin 55 extends into openings in the rear side wall portions of the lever 54 so as to support the latter for turning movement around the axis of the pivot pin 55. The rear side wall portions of the top-rolls-carrying arm 53 are formed with a pair of slots 63, respectively, which correspond in all respects to the slots 13 described above, and the pivot pin 55 extends through the slot 63 so as to cooperate therewith for guiding the top-rolls-carrying arm 53 -for movement toward and away from the drafting field while remaining parallel thereto when the arm 53 is inthe region of its lower operating position illustrated in FIG. 7. Furthermore, the rear side wall portions of the arm 53 are formed with a pair of elongated cutouts 68 which correspond to the cutouts'14, but in the embodiment of FIG. 7 a separate pin 67 is carried by the supporting bracket 2 extending therethrough parallel to the pin 55 and extending into the elongated cutout 68 to cooperate therewith for also guiding the arm 53 when it is in the region of its lower operating position. It will be noted that the cutout 68 has the same inclination as the slots 63, and this cutout 68 opens onto the rear edge of the arm 53.

In addition, the rear side wall portions of the arm 53' are respectively formed'with a pair of V-slots 65 correspending to the slots 15 described above, and the rear side Wall portionsof the lever 54 are provided with a pin means in the form of a pair of pins 66 which respectively carry rollers 66' which are respectively located in the V- slots 65, these pins 66 being fixed to the rear side wall portions of the lever 54 and extending inwardly therefrom into the slots 65 where the rollers 66' are located. Furthermore, the left end portions of the slots 65 are respectively formed with detent recesses 65 shown most clearly in FIGS. 8 and 9, and when the lever 54 is in the position illustrated in'FIG. 7 the'rollers 66 are respectively located in the recesses 65'- so as to cooperate therewith to form detents which releasably hold the structure in the position illustrated in FIG. 7 in opposition to the springs which load the saddle arms 12 and urge the latter together with the top rolls downwardly in a well known manner.

The rear side wall portions of the top-rolls carrying arm 53 are also formed with a pair of slots 70 which at their upper portions, as viewed in FIG.'7, generally follow the inclination of the slots 65 and which are curved at their lower portions so that when the arm '53 has been raised to the position shown in FIG. 8 andthen turns around the pin to the position shown in FIG. 9 the curvature of the slots 70 below the pin 69 and roller 69" of the FIG; 8 extends along a circle whose center is in the axis of the pin 55 when the arm 53 has the elevation ofFIGS. 8 and 9. The supporting bracket 2 fixedly carries the pin 69 which extends therethrough into the cutouts 70 and in these cutouts the pin 69 has a pair of rollers 69 for the purpose of reducing the friction. The rollers 69' cooperate with the lower ends of the slots 70 when the parts have the position shown in FIG. 9 to limit theturning of the parts away from the drafting field. Of course, if desired, the pins '55 and 67 maybe provided with rollers respec tively located in the slots 63 and cutouts 68 to reduce the friction. 7

When it is desired to move the arm 53 from its lower operating position shown in FIG-7 to: its upper inoperative position indicated in FIG. 9, the operator simply turns the lever 54 upwardly in the direction of the arrow A shown in FIG. 7, and this will result in movement of the rollers 66'out of the detent recesses and continued turning of the lever 54 will move the pin 66 and the rollers 66 along the pair of V-slots 65 so as-to raise the arm 53 whose upward movement at this time is controlled by the guide means formed by the pin 55 and the slot 63, on the one hand, and the pin 67 and cutouts 68, on the other hand, and'this operation continues until the parts have the elevation shown in FIG. 8, and it will be noted that at this time the rear open portion of the cutouts 68 are at the same elevation as the pin 67 so that during the turning of the arm 53 in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in FIGS. 8 and 9, from the position of FIG. 8 to that of FIG. 9 the cutouts 68 can move away from the pin 67 with the latter being located at the rear open portion of the cutouts 68during the initial turning of the arm 53 from the position of FIG. 8 toward that of FIG. 9. This turning is brought about on the one hand because the pin 55 is now located at the bottom ends of the slots 63 so that the arm 53 cannot move upwardly beyond the position of FIG. 8 without turning around the pin 55, and on the other hand because the continued turning of the lever 54 places the pins 66 and rollers 66' at the right ends of the slots 65-, as viewed in FIGS. 7-9, and thus the continued turning of the lever 54 in the direction of the arrow A will result in turning of the arm 53 and all of the structure carried thereby from the position of FIG. 8 to that of FIG. 9, and this turning will end, as pointed out above, as a result of the engagement between the lower ends of the slots with the rollers 69.

The arm 53 can be releasably held in its upper inoperative position indicated in FIG. 9 in any suitable manner by means of known devices so that after the lever 54 is actuated by the operator and turned in a clockwise direction, opposite to the direction of the arrow A of FIG. 7, the parts will be returned to the position of FIG. 7. During the return of the parts toward the position of FIG. 7, the series of top-rolls will respectively be located at. thedrawing field next to the series of bottom rolls, respectively, when the arm 53 has reached the position shown in FIG. 8, and then during the continued turning of the lever '54 to the position of FIG. 7 the loading springs which are carried by the armf53 and act on the saddle arms 12 are compressed and the structure is then locked in the position shown in FIG. 7 with the top-rolls suitably loaded and back in their operating position.

Of course, with the embodiment of FIG. 7 it is equally possible to construct the pivot pin 55 in the same way as the pivot pin 5- (see FIG. 10) so that it is a simple matter to remove the top-rolls assembly from the supporting bracket 2, and also the arm 53 may carry stops as described above to cooperate with the saddle arms 12 of the rear top-rolls 9 and 10 to limit the downward movement thereof with respect to the arm 53 so as to maintain the top-rolls 11 at the drafting field after the rear top-rolls have moved upwardly away from the drafting field.

Naturally, many variations are possible within the scope of the invention. Thus, the various elongated slots and cutouts may have the desired inclination and curvature which will produce the desired movement of the toprolls carrying arm in any desired number of different directions so as to eliminate any possible shifting of the topr its operating position, and the operating lever 4 or 54,

instead of having the constructions described above, may

be provided with a pair of rear side wall portions between tweenthe side walls of the operating lever and the operating lever itself is received between the side walls of the supporting bracket. Variations of this nature are of course included in the invention.

Instead of forming the notches and slots directly in the side walls of the top-rolls-carrying arm, plates may be interchangeably connected with the latter arm to form the rear side walls thereof or part-s of the rear side walls, and different sets of plates may have different sets of notches and slots so that by changing one set of plates for another the movement of the top rolls-carrying arm in response to turning of the operating lever can be changed.

It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together, may also find a useful application in other types of textile machines differing from the types described above.

While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in textile drafting assemblies, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that others can by applying current knowledge readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention and, therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalence of the following claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

-l. In a textile draffing assembly, in combination, a stationary supporting bracket; 21 top-rolls-carrying arm extending forwardly from said bracket and having a pair of rear side wall portions guided by said bracket, said side wall portions each eing formed with a pair of elongated aligned cutouts each of which has elongated parallel side edges extending substantially perpendicularly to the drawing field when said arm is in a lower operating position thereof; and a pair of horizontal members carried by said supporting bracket and extending into said cutouts and cooperating with said side edges thereof to guide said arm for movement away from and toward the drafting field when said am is in the vicinity of its lower operating position, whereby said arm will be guided in the vicinity of its lower operating position toward and away from the drafting field while remaining substantially parallel thereto.

2. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, a stationary supporting bracket; a top-rolls-carrying arm extending forwardly from said bracket and having a pair of rear side wall portions guided in said bracket; a stationary pivot pin carried by said bracket; a manually operable lever turnably carried by said pivot pin and said lever carrying a second pin parallel to said pivot pin and having a portion extending beyond said lever, at least one of said side walls of said arm being formed with a slot in which the portion of said second pin located beyond said lever is located to cooperate with said slot for raising and lowering said arm during turning of said lever with respect to said supporting bracket; and pin-and-slot means cooperating with said bracket and arm to guide the latter when it is in the region of its lower operating position upwardly away from and downwardly toward the drafting field while remaining substantially parallel thereto, said pin-and-slot means including a pair of elongated slots respectively formed in said side walls of said arm, extending substantially perpendicularly to the drafting field, and said pin-and-slot means including portions of said stationary pivot pin respectively located in said latter slots, and said pin-andslot means including at least one pair of additional elongated cutouts parallel to said latter pair\of slots and an elongated rigid member extending through said bracket and cooperating with said cutouts to participate also in the guiding of said arm toward and away from the drafting field while remaining substantially parallel thereto when said arm is in the vicinity of its lower operating position adjacent to the drafting field.

3. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, an elongated stationary horizontal bar; a supporting bracket fixed to and extending upwardly from said bar; a toprolls-carrying arm extending forwardly from said bracket and having a pair of rear side wall portions guided in said bracket, said rear side wall portions being formed with a pair of upper aligned elongated slots extending substantially perpendicularly to the drafting field when said arm is in a lower operating position thereof, said side wall portions also being formed with a pair of aligned elongated cutouts each having opposite side edges extending parallel to said slots and said cutouts having open bottom ends, said stationary bar being located in said cutouts when said arm is in said lower operating position thereof, and said side wall portions being respectively formed with a pair of second elongated slots located between said cutouts and said first-mentioned slots; a stationary pivot I pin carried by said bracket and extending into said firstmentioned slots of said arm to cooperate with the latter slots to guide said arm for movement toward and away from the drafting field when said arm is in the region of its lower operating position, said bar and cutouts also participating in the guiding of said arm when it is in the region of its lower operating position; a lever extending between said rear side wall portions of said arm and. turnably carried by said stationary pivot pin, said lever carrying a cross pin having free end portions respectively extending into said second pair of slots to cooperate with the latter for raising and lowering said arm during turning of said lever.

4. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, an elongated stationary horizontal bar; a supporting bracket fixed to and extending upwardly from said bar; a toprolls-carrying arm extending forwardly from said bracket and having a pair of rear side wall portions guided in said bracket, said rear side wall portions being formed with a pair of upper aligned elongated slots extending substantially perpendicularly to the drafting field Whensaid arm is in a lower operating position thereof, said side wall portions also being formed with a pair of aligned elongated cutouts each having opposite side edges extending parallel to said slots and said cutouts having open bottom ends, said stationary bar being located in said cutouts when said arm is in said lower operating position thereof, and said side wall portions being respectively formed with a pair of second elongated slots located between said cutouts and said first-mentioned slots; a stationary pivot pin carried by said bracket and extending into said first-mentioned slots of said arm to cooperate with the latter slots to guide said arm for movement toward and away from the drafting field when said arm is in the region of its lower operating position, said bar and cutouts also participatin in the guiding of said arm when it is in the region of its lower operating position; a lever extending between said rear side wall portions of said arm and turnably carried by said stationary pivot pin, said lever carrying a cross pin having free end portions respectively extending into said second pair of slots to cooperate with the latter for raising and lowering said arm during turning of said lever, said second pair of slots being of substantially V-shaped configuration and each of said second pair of slots having an apex portion which is intermediate its ends and substantially at the lowest part of said second slots.

5. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, a stationary bracket; a stationary pivot pin carried by said bracket; a top-rolls-carrying arm extending forwardly from said bracket and having a pair of rear side wall portions guided by said bracket, said pair of side walls respectively being formed with elongated slots which exextending into the latter cutouts so that the latter cutouts and said slots cooperate with said pins to guide said arm for movement toward and away from the drafting field while remaining substantially parallel thereto as long as said arm is in the region of said drafting field, said side Wall portions also being formed with a pair of substantially V-shaped slots which respectively have their crests adjacent their lower ends; a lever turnably carried by said pivot pin, overlapping said rear side wall portions of said arm and having guide pin portions which extend into said V-shaped slots for raising and lowering said arm during turning of said lever.

6. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, a stationary bracket; a stationary pivot pin carried by said bracket; a top-rolls-carrying arm extending forwardly from said bracket and having a pair of rear side wall portions guided by said bracket, said pair of side walls respectively being formed with elongated slots which extend substantially perpendicularly to the drafting field when said arm is in a lower operating position thereof where said arm extends parallel to the drafting field, and said stationary pivot pin extending through said slots, said rear side wall portions being formed with a pair of elongated cutouts extending substantially parallel to said slots and said bracket carrying a second stationary pin extending into the'latter cutouts so that the ltater cutouts and said slots cooperate with said pins to guide said arm for movement toward and away from the drafting field while remaining substantially parallel thereto as long as said arm is in the region of said drafting field, said side wall portions also being formed with a pair of substantially V-shaped slots which respectively have their crests adjacent their lower ends; a lever turnably carried by said pivot pin; overlapping said rear side wall portions of said arm and having guide pin portions which extend into said V-shaped slots for raising and lowering said arm during turning of said lever; a third stationary pin carried by said bracket, said pair of rear side wall portions of said arm being formed with a pair of additional curved slots in which end portions of said third pin are located, and the ends of said curved slots cooperating with said third pin to limit the range of turning of said arm, said elongated cutouts having'rear open portions through which said second pin can pass during turning of said arm upwardly away from said lower operating position thereof.

7. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, a stationary supporting bracket; a lever turnably carried by said bracket; a top-rolls-carrying arm extending forwardly from said bracket in a direction substantially parallel to the drafting field when said arm is in a lower operating position, said arm having a pair of rear side wall portions guided by said bracket, said side wall portions being respectively formed with a pair of aligned elongated slots; pin means carried by said lever and cooperating with said slots for raising and lowering said arm with respect to said bracket, said slots respectively terminating in end portions receiving said latter pin and cooperating therewithto form a detent releasably holding said arm in said lower operating position thereof; and pin-andslot'means cooperating with said bracket and arm to guide the latter in the region of its lower operating position toward and away from the drafting field in a direction substantially perpendicular thereto.

8. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, a stationary supporting bracket; a stationary pivot pin carried by said bracket; a lever turnably carried by said pivot pin; a top-rolls-carrying arm extending forwardly oes, 12s

12 from said bracket in a direction substantially parallel to the drafting field when said arm is in a lower operating position thereof, said arm being movable from said lower operating position to an inoperative position and said arm having a pair of rear side wall portions guided by said bracket and formed with a pair of aligned elongated slots of predetermined curvature; pin means carried by said lever for turning movement therewith and extending into said slots to cooperate with said arm for raising and lowering the latter; and pin-and-slot means cooperating with said supporting bracket and said .arm to guide the latter for movement toward and away from the drafting field in the region of the lower operating position of said arm in a direction substantially, perpendicular to the drafting field, said pin means when reaching one of the ends of said slots turning said arm during the further turning of said lever about said pivot pin toward said upper inoperative position of said arm.

9. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, a stationary supporting bracket having a pair of spaced parallel side Walls; an elongated top-rolls-carrying arm extending forwardly from said bracket in a direction substantially parallel to the drafting field when said arm is in a lower operating position thereof, said arm having a pair of rear side wall portions located between said side walls of said bracket and next to the latter, said rear side wall portions of said arm being respectively formed with a pair of elongated slots extending substantially perpendicularly to the drafting field when said arm is in said lower operating position thereof; a stationary pivot pin carried by said bracket and extending between said side walls thereof through said slots to cooperate therewith to guide said arm for movement when it is in the region of its lower operating position; and a lever extending between said rear side wall portions of said arm and turnably carried by said pin, said lever cooperating with said arm to move the latter to' and from said lower operating position thereof.

10. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, a stationary supporting bracket having a pair of opposed side surfaces; an elongated top-rolls-carrying arm extending forwardly from said bracket in a direction substantially parallel to the drafting field when said arm is in a lower operating position thereof, said arm having a pair of rear side wall portions between which said bracket is located with said side wall portions parallel and next to said surfaces of said bracket, said side walls respectively being formed with a pair of elongated slots extending substantially perpendicularly to the drafting field when said arm is in said lower operating position thereof, and said bracket fixedly carrying a pivot pin which extends through and beyond said slots to cooperate therewith to guide said arm for movement when it is in the region of its lower operating position; and lever means cooperating with said arm to move the same to and from said lower operating position thereof, said lever means being turnably carried by said pin and having a pair of side wall portions between which said rear side wall portions of said arm are located.

11. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, a stationary supporting bracket having a pair of opposed side surfaces; an elongated top-rolls-carrying arm extending forwardly from said bracket in a direction substantially parallel to the drafting field when said arm is in a lower operating position thereof, said arm having a pair of rear side wall portions between which said bracket is located with said side wall portions parallel and next to said surfaces of said bracket, said side wall portions respectively being formed with a pair of elongated slots extending substantially perpendicularly to the drafting field when said arm is in said lower operating position thereof, and said bracket fixedly carrying a pivot pin which extends through and beyond said slots to cooperate therewith to guidesaid arm for movement when it is in the region of its lower operating position;

and lever means cooperating with said arm to move the same to and from said lower operating position thereof,

said lever means being turnably carried by said pin and having a pair of side wall portions between which said rear side wall portions of said arm are located, said lever means fixedly carrying a pair of pins extending from said side wall portions thereof inwardly toward said rear side wall portions of said arm, and said rear side wall portions of said arm being respectively formed with a pair of additional slots into which said latter pins extend, said latter pins cooperating with said latter slots to raise and lower said arm between said positions thereof.

12. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, a stationary supporting bracket; a top-rolls-carrying arm extending forwardly from and overlapping said bracket; and pivot pin means carried by said bracket and cooperating with said arm to support the latter for turning movement with respect to said bracket, said pivot pin means including an internally threaded sleeve and a threaded screw extending into and threadedly connected with said sleeve, said sleeve and screw respectively having heads ends located on opposite sides of said arm, so that upon separating said screw from said sleeve to remove said pivot pin means said top-rolls-carrying arm can be separated from said bracket.

13. In a textile drafting assembly, in combination, a

stationary supporting bracket; an arm mounted on and extending forwardly from said bracket; a plurality of stationary bottom rolls including forward bottom rolls and rear bottom rollsg a plurality of top rolls mounted on said arm and including forward top rolls and rear top rolls; means for moving said arm with respect to said bracket between an operative lower position in which the top rolls engage with the respective bottom rolls and an inoperative upper position in which the top rolls are spaced from said bottom rolls; and guide means provided on said arm, on said moving means and on said bracket for guiding the arm, while the latter moves from its operative toward its inoperative position, in a direction to first move the rear top rolls away from the rear bottom rolls while the forward top rolls remain in engage ment with the forward bottom rolls, and to thereupon move the forward top rolls away from the forward bottom rolls.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 7 2,508,964 Naegeli May 23, 1950 2,777,169 Noguera Jan. 15, 1957 2,810,938 Rulon-Miller et a1. Oct. 29, 1957 2,865,056 Kubler Dec. 23, 1958 2,941,263 Kubler June 21, 1960 

